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Asked for specifics, Price said the exchange subsidies could “easily be morphed into a defined contribution model to allow for true flexibility,” enabling patients to choose high-deductible catastrophic plans, for example. “Those kinds of things would be available where the current law doesn’t allow them,” he said.

Price also predicted that Democrats will slowly begin turning against the less popular elements of the Affordable Care Act, making them more vulnerable to repeal efforts.

Pointing to a recent letter by 16 Senate Democrats calling for a delay in the health law’s medical device tax, Price — a conservative Republican from Georgia — said the law’s supporters were effectively saying, “Time out, we didn’t mean that.”

“That will occur, I believe, over and over again,” he said.

Dean Rosen, a partner at Mehlman Vogel Castagnetti, said he hoped the White House would work with Republican-led states to make the law seem “more bipartisan,” giving states flexibility over their Medicaid programs and other elements of the ACA.

Because so many states are resisting the law’s Medicaid expansion, Rosen said, the ACA “looks at least for a number of years on the Medicaid side a little bit more like Swiss cheese than comprehensive coverage.”

But Tom Perriello, president and CEO of the Center for American Progress Action Fund, said he predicted the health law would “largely move forward in the direction I think had been envisioned.” But he worried that gerrymandering around the country had skewed the conversation on health care, papering over the more positive feelings toward the law he said were percolating below the surface.

“The trend lines that we’re having on our conversation is actually much more positive,” he said.

This article first appeared on POLITICO Pro at 8:52 a.m. on December 13, 2012.

Obamacare is looting the middle class of America. Regardless of political affiliation - the Government has become so corrupt through special interests - that we can look to a downward spiral for this Country like nothing current generations have ever seen.

Obamacare is a disaster - will bankrtupt this country and leave American citizens in bad health and abject poverty.

Obama is putting Campaign Contributer United Healthcare in charge of regulating and administering the"Exchanges." Trillions of taxpayer funds will be funneled through these Exchanges. What could possibly go wrong?

I am so tired of reading about the GOP's what if's and their opinions of the world.

There has been discussion about the medical device tax since the ACA was proposed. So in typical GOP fashion, now it's the entire ACA that "he" feels that the Dems will walk away from.

Again, what Republican believe are nothing but their wishes and not true beliefs. They refused to listen to scientific things like polls and statistics. They refuse to listen to why they actual lost seats in the House, Senate and the Presidency. Rick Perry believes this and Paul Ryan beliefs that.

So Obama keeps saying he's trying to save the middle class, well that is so not true. I'm the working poor, and now my company just gave us a choice either pay 9% more in insurance or they will drop some insurance coverage! This president hasn't done a dam thing but make us suffer! Just who is he trying to help, the illegals? These are the only people I see getting anything from this clown! Sears just told their employees here is $1,000 for the year, go get your own insurance. He took a perfectly good system and ruined it! Why didn't this clown go after the hospitals charging $7.00 for a Tylenol, instead we suffer again. Everything has gone up except our pay, I might as well go on welfare and stay home, working won't pay my bills anymore!

The health care system is broken, ACA didn't fix the system, but in fairness it made a stab at Health Insurance Reform.

If we are to get real reform into the system, you have to involve everyone who is a stakeholder in the process, Payors, Providers and most importantly, "us".

The biggest problem with ACA is a lot of it is "King Canute" commanding the waves to recede. I believe that we should break our health care system into two primary functions:

1. Preventative, diagnostic and ongoing treatment - Insurance of this sort ought to cover up to about $25,000 a year in proceedures and their should be a very heavy emphasis on diagnosing issues, incentivizing wellness and yes responsible behavior and treating conditions that are smaller but chronic in nature.

My primary point is we spend WAY too much on the Catastrophic or Heroic portion of health care, because the system is reactive NOT proactive.

2. Catastrophic -Get qualtiy care and outcomes treatments on pre- negotiated basis. Put and end to "fee for service" and structure everything on "Episodic Bundling" basis. End the billing basis of "ala carte".

This would end the practice of providers, padding the bill for admitance.

This may sound harsh, but the system should reward those who chose to manage their own health care needs responsibly and should ration those who don't.

The US has a serious issue with our "lifestyle" costs, you have NO chance of getting these costs in line until how we chose to live is addressed.

Sure,the 16 Democrats who KNEW what was in the bill now want to eliminate parts of it like the the medical device tax because it will affect their campaign contributors. They didn't seem to mind when they rammed it through to kiss Obama's rear end. The Republicans should oppose EVERY attempt to invalidate ANY part of the bill unless the ENTIRE bill is repealed. They should simply state that "You proposed it, you supported it,you pushed for it,you lied,schemed,and manipulated for it, you voted for it and defended it. Now you own it " !! Of course we all know that crybaby Boehner and the Republicans don't have the balls to do that.